Peter benjamin lola montez biography

Lola Montez (musical)

Australian film by Alan Burke

Lola Montez

Original cast recording

MusicPeter Stannard
LyricsPeter Benjamin
BookAlan Burke
Productions Melbourne
Brisbane/Sydney

Lola Montez is a Australian musical. It was written by Alan Burke, Peter Stannard, and Peter Benjamin and focuses on four days of Lola Montez visiting the Ballarat Goldfields.

Background

Stannard, Benjamin, and Burke were all friends from university who wanted to write a musical together. Alan Burke says he had never heard of Lola Montez until he heard her mentioned in a program on the ABC. He was attracted to the subject because it was Australian but had international appeal; he did not want to make something along the lines of On Our Selection. Also, since the lead was a performer, the songs would come naturally.[1]

Productions

Original production

Hugh Hunt of the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust heard several auditions of the work and agreed to fund a trial production at the Union Theatre Repertory Company in Melbourne in early It was directed by John Sumner. The production was very popular.

Cast

Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust production

The Trust took up their option and launched a new production. George Carden was brought in to direct.[2][3]

Alan Burke says his dream Lola was Vivien Leigh but that he wanted Moyra Fraser to star.[1] Hugh Hunt imported 25 year old Mary Preston from the United Kingdom to play the lead.[4] Burke said Preston was hopelessly miscast playing a 37 year old aging beauty.[1]

The show trialled in Brisbane for a short season. Michael Cole, playing Daniel, was sacked in Brisbane because of his voice. He was replaced by Eric Thornton, who Burke said was too old - a year-old man playing a year-old. The musical moved to Sydney, where it opened on 22 October Burke says it lost £30, and "was a show loved by very few people but it went into legend."[1] However the show did run for more than three months.[2][5] Michael Cole's single recording of "Saturday Girl" became a minor hit.[3]

Cole later appeared in the TV musical Pardon Miss Westcott which was commissioned from the writers of Lola Montez.[6]

Cast

  • Mary Preston as Lola
  • Frank Wilson as Sam
  • Michael Cole, then Eric Thornton, as Daniel

The production and costumes were designed by Hermia Boyd. A retrospective celebration of the work was mounted in February at the Smorgon Family Plaza, Arts Centre Melbourne.[7]

television play

Lola Montez was adapted for TV by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in [8]

Lola and the Highwayman

In , the ABC presented a TV special called Lola and the Highwayman.

Revised edition

The musical has been much revived since in amateur and school productions.[9]

The musical was heavily revised in for a production in Canberra.[3][10][11]

References

  1. ^ abcd"Alan Burke interviewed by Bill Stephens in the Esso Performing Arts collection". National Library of Australia.
  2. ^ abAlan Burke obituary at Sydney Morning Herald
  3. ^ abc"Lola Montez the musical". Janus Entertainment.
  4. ^"English star is "Lola Montez"". The Australian Women's Weekly. Vol.&#;26, no.&#; Australia. 29 October p.&#; Retrieved 9 April &#; via National Library of Australia.
  5. ^"Women's Letters". The Bulletin. 23 November p.&#;
  6. ^Vagg, Stephen (4 November ). "Forgotten TV Plays: Pardon Miss Wescott". Filmink.
  7. ^Hermia Boyd & Lola Montez: Designing an Australian gold rush musical. Arts Centre Melboure, February [1]
  8. ^ TV adaptation at Ausstage
  9. ^Lola Montez at David Spicer Productions
  10. ^"Arts and entertainment Lola Montez inspired Australian musical". The Canberra Times. Vol.&#;63, no.&#;19, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 28 November p.&#; Retrieved 27 May &#; via National Library of Australia.
  11. ^"Goldfield spirit in light, bright 'Lola'". The Canberra Times. Vol.&#;63, no.&#;19, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 5 December p.&#; Retrieved 27 May &#; via National Library of Australia.

External links